Plans

Planning enables a more effective response by laying out an agreed upon approach to how we will respond to incidents. They define our priorities and goals. They also outline how we are going to achieve our goals and what each person is responsible for doing. A good plan will use everyone's talents and stresses working together.

Plans are intended to manage risk. In Seattle, we have two plans that all of our planning are based on. One is the Seattle Hazard Identification and Vulnerability Analysis (SHIVA) that was mentioned above and the other is the Threat and Hazard Identification and Risk Analysis (THIRA).

Every disaster is different and because we don't know when an incident will strike or what will happen when it occurs, plans are designed to be flexible and adaptable.

Most planners will tell you that the process of coming up with the plan is probably more valuable than the plan itself. In Seattle, we believe in planning with the community not for them. This means we need everyone to participate in building our plans. By planning together, we gain a better understanding of each other's capabilities and limitations, and we develop relationships and learn to trust those who will be working with us when the disaster occurs.

A plan is not something that gets completed and then goes on a bookshelf until it gets updated. Planning is part of a cycle of preparedness. Plans guide how we organize and equip our responders, conduct training and ensure everyone understands their roles and responsibilities within the plan. Exercises test our plans and identify where improvements are needed. Plans are then updated to incorporate lessons learned. In developing our plans we utilize a number of guides and reflect on best practices developed by others. These documents can be found in our Resource Library under Planning Related Information.

If you are interested in learning more about the City's plans, have feedback regarding a plan or would like to know how to get involved in our planning efforts, please send your comments to Seattle-EOC@seattle.gov.

This document lays out the plan for how the city will respond to a major disaster, from the moment the incident occurs through the days that follow. The plan is anchored to our Seattle Hazard Identification and Vulnerability Analysis and focuses on the consequences of any major disaster. It provides guidance for how we will coordinate the overall city response and provide clear, concise communications about the nature and scope of the event. It outlines the responsibilities of each City Department that plays a role in responding to the event and provides a structure for the work done in the Emergency Operations Center. To view the plan click here.

Seattle All Hazards Mitigation Plan. This document lays out a plan for strengthening city-owned and operated facilities and infrastructure before the disaster happens and making them better able to withstand both natural and man-made hazards. It also identifies actions the city may take to encourage activities by private property owners to strengthen their buildings. Click here to view the plan.

Since 2012, Seattle has been working on the development of disaster recovery plans that include catastrophic events. Initial efforts on recovery planning resulted in the development of the Post-Disaster Recovery Plan Framework published in 2013. We are continuing to build on that body of work as we develop the Seattle Disaster Recovery Plan. For an overview of that project please click here.

In March, our executive advisory group met to discuss what recovery might look like should we experience a major or catastrophic earthquake in Seattle. Discussions continued at our Seattle Disaster Recovery Planning Committee Workshop held on May 6, 2014 with more than 70 stakeholders participating. Joining us at this kick off the meeting, were President Natalie Robottom and Recovery Manager Raymond Goodman from Saint John the Baptist Parish, LA to talk to us about lessons learned following Hurricane Isaac as they were the first local jurisdiction to adopt concepts of the National Disaster Recovery Framework. Their presentation is located here. Additional workshops will be held during summer, 2014 with our Executive Advisory Group coming back together to review planning efforts later in the year.

Each City Department creates emergency plans to support the missions they are required to carry out under the City Charter and in the Seattle Disaster Readiness and Response Plan (SDRRP). These plans are coordinated with the SDRRP, other department plans, and regional plans as needed. To find out more about specific plans for City Departments click the links below

While Seattle is the largest City within King County, the effectiveness of any plan relies on it fitting seamlessly within the larger plan. To this end, the Office of Emergency Management actively coordinates its planning efforts with King County. The following links provide information on County plans.

King County recently kicked off a county-wide, two-year planning process for crafting a comprehensive long-term recovery strategy following a major earthquake or other catastrophe, To learn more click here

King County supports a number of programs and plans. To learn more about them click here

Public Health Seattle King County - To learn more about Public Health preparedness plans click here

State and local emergency management agencies have the responsibility to identify hazards to their communities and prepare plans for managing hazardous incidents when and as they occur. The Puget Sound Catastrophic Disaster Coordination Plan (Coordination Plan) assists local, State, Federal, and private sector partners in coordinating their planning, response to and recovery from regional catastrophic incidents and disasters. The coordination plan is voluntary and available to all public, private, Tribal and non-profit entities in the 8-county Puget Sound Region encompassing (approximately from north to south) Island, Skagit, Snohomish, King, Kitsap, Pierce,Thurston and Mason counties.

The coordination plan provides an all-hazards framework for coordination among local, state, tribal and federal entities prior to, during, and following a catastrophic incident in the Puget Sound area. The coordination plan and its annexes were developed to help local, state, tribal, federal, and private sectorpartners coordinate their planning for, response to and recovery from regional catastrophic incidents.The coordination plan and its annexes do not usurp or infringe on the authorities, plans, or procedures of any participating jurisdiction, agency, or organization. All necessary decisions affecting response, recovery,protective actions, public health and safety advisories, etc., are made by responsible officials under their existing authorities, policies, plans, and procedures. To learn more about the plan click here

The Washington State Military Department is charged with the responsibility of developing, maintaining and administering a comprehensive statewide program of emergency management to ensure the state is adequately prepared to respond to and recover from disasters and emergencies. They have a number of plans that address this responsibility. To learn more about them click here

All disasters start locally, but major events often require the assistance of the federal government. After the terrorist attacks on September 11 the federal government enacted several initiatives to improve the way that the country plans for and responds to large scale disasters. The following links provide information that sets the standard for how states, regions, and local municipalities structure and implement their emergency planning efforts.